In For The Kill
by gimme shelter
Summary: dr molly stone takes a new job in gotham and has to prepare for old wounds to be re-opened rated m for later chapters please review x
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Life's Never Dull

Dr Molly Stone walked through the crowded airport, her heels clicked against the floor as she walked and despite being surrounded by crowds of people screaming and talking excitedly at the prospects of holidays, seeing family etc she heard nothing but the sound of her own heels clicking as she walked. She was lost in her own thoughts, the thoughts of leaving her brother, the case she'd just finished working on, distant memories, her future in a new city, too many thoughts. She was brought back to reality by an overly smiley check in attendant who wore to much frosted pink lipstick, so much that it was stuck to her teeth, and who wore so much strong, musty perfume that Molly thought she would choke on the stench.

'Your ticket and passport please' the overly smiley attendant asked once more trying, badly, to hide her frustration at Molly's daydreaming, the toothy grin starting to falter and frown lines appearing, 'sorry' Lara said handing her documents over, 'very good Dr Stone have a safe journey and we hope you enjoy your flight' the attendant said handing the documents back as though she couldn't wait to be rid of them, Molly merely nodded a thank you and walked away to wait for her flight.

As she sat in her seat waiting for the plane to take off her thoughts returned, she thought of her life, eventful as it had been in her short 25 years of life, she sighed pulling her long, wavy brown hair back from her face, she was tired but knew she wouldn't sleep, she never could sleep on planes. As the plane finally took off she pulled out the files she had been sent and continued reading from where she'd left off, un able to concentrate she pulled the letter she had been sent that was the reason for this big life change, and re-read it.

Dear Dr Stone,

I hope my letter finds you well, and fully recovered from your recent ordeal. The reason for my writing to you is to offer you a position at out prestigious asylum, I am in no doubt you have heard of Arkham and our inmates. I feel this offer would benefit both of us, you are one of the most successful doctors in your field as recently proven with your involvement in the highly documents FBI case for the capture of the notorious mass murderer Frank Grentz, and your employment at Arkham would benefit my patients I feel highly confident that you would help with the recovery of many patients and we both know that would benefit patients and society. I understand you may have reservations about uprooting your whole life in Baltimore and moving to Gotham, but a change can do wonders and having conversed with your mother I know she would love to have her daughter nearer. As an employee of Arkham I can guarantee you a high salary and full benefits, and as you know with certain inmates remaining in our care Gotham has never been a safer or nicer place to live in.

Please consider my offer, my details are enclosed and I eagerly await your response.

Yours sincerely

Dr Stanley Chilton

Head Doctor and director of Arkham Asylum

Molly folded the letter back up and placed it in the files. She didn't really believe any of the words written in the letter, she had heard of Dr Chilton and his strong desire for results with his patients, by any means necessary. But she did miss her mother and the case in Baltimore had taken its toll on her both physically and mentally, she felt exhausted. So begrudgingly with the support of her brother Wesley she packed up all her belongings and here she was on her way to Gotham.

She had felt awful for leaving Wesley alone in Baltimore, but she knew her brother was strong and could cope in most situations; it was a trait they both shared. Wesley at 28 years old, standing at 6 ft 3 would be fine, she stared at a picture she had thrown into the file in her hurry to get to the airport, taken only 2 years ago her brother really hadn't changed tall, muscular build that came from his training to be an FBI agent, and his strong blue eyes, he was not your average FBI agent, Wesley had a kind face and could be shy and quiet but once in a job he became strong, hard faced and focused. She remembered back to Wesley's graduation at the academy and the words his superior said to him,

'Killer instinct boy, you got it, you go a god given gift, and I swear you could shoot a flea from a mile off'.

She remembered how disturbed Wesley was by these words when he reflected back on them, being associated with the word killer did not appeal to Wesley in any way. But he was an amazing shot another trait she inherited from her older brother, though only 3 years between them Wesley had demanded she learn to shoot a gun for self defence should she ever need it, which living where they did with the high crime rate, probably wasn't a bad idea.

She smiled at the thought of her brother, and went back to reading her files, as part of her acceptance of the job Dr Chilton had requested she work with three high profile inmates, she read their profiles one by one, making quick notes on each of the three, first;

Dr Jonathan Crane

Age: 30

Fired from Gotham University before accepting job at Arkham

Former doctor at Arkham

Experimented on patients using hallucinogenic drugs that induce fear

Uses alter ego 'the scarecrow' and wears mask to scare victims

Only recently incarcerated at Arkham

Second was an all too familiar name,

Dr Ivan Sloane

Age: 55

Inmate at Arkham for twenty years, since his capture

Briefly transferred to Baltimore to help on the Frank Grentz case

Former psychiatrist

Physically and mentally tortured patients

Doesn't respond well to many of the staff at Arkham

She smiled to herself when she finished her notes on Sloane, working with Sloane again should be entertaining.

She finally got round to reading the last patients file,

The joker (real name unknown)

Age: unknown

Recently incarcerated at Arkham

Refuses to speak to any doctor at Arkham

Deranged madman, enjoys chaos

Zero empathy

Real name, family, origins all unknown

She smiled to herself so Dr Chilton wanted her to treat the joker, he must be getting desperate for results, if the joker had managed to alienate most of his staff. The pilot announcing they would be landing soon interrupted her thoughts,

'Life's never dull' she muttered quietly, smiling.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Hometown Glory

Vivienne Stone couldn't be happier her daughter was moving to Gotham, she had gone into obsessive cleaning overdrive since Molly had told her, and cleaning a mansion was not an easy task. Vivienne was born in England, as were her children and her deceased husband, she shared the mansion with her brother Aiden; they had purchased it together with their family inheritance, using the money they both earned from their property company to live on and put aside for Molly and Wesley. The mansion was located just on the outskirts of Gotham and the closest neighbour they had was Bruce Wayne. Vivienne's life had gotten much easier the day she moved her family away from England, it was a fresh start for them all, a chance to forget the past and all its troubles.

Vivienne was awoken from her thoughts at the sound of car wheels crunching on the gravel outside,

'She's here' she shrieked,

Aiden hadn't seen his sister this excited in a long time, he smiled and followed her down the stairs to the front door.

Molly emerged from the car only to be tackled in to vice grip hug by her over excited mother, she looked over her mothers shoulder to see her uncle smirking, she laughed as her mother finally pulled away to look at her daughter. She noticed how tired her daughter looked but she was still beautiful her creamy jade, almond shaped eyes still sparkled, her porcelain skin was flawless and her hair was longer now reaching the middle of her back running straight then curling at the ends the way it always had, she looked thinner but still maintained her curves and her full lips formed a smile. Molly at the same time was taking in her mother she had hardly aged her hair still a rich chestnut brown, her eyes were so similar to Molly's own but they were the same rich blue of Wesley's, they even had the same smile she noted, smiling at the realisation. They ended their embrace and Vivienne instantly went into organisation mode directing where Molly's things were to be taken and insisting on paying for the cab. Molly walked over to her uncle smiling, he pulled her into a hug squeezing her tightly, Molly knew how important she and Wesley were to their uncle he had never married or had a family of his own and had practically helped his sister raise Wesley and Molly since they were young and had even moved from England with them. Aiden looked very much like Vivienne same blue eyes, though his hair was a darker brown, Molly had never understood how her uncle had never married he was a good looking man and despite several long term relationships he always said he'd never found the one and he wouldn't settle for anything less, though her mother had informed her that years ago before Molly was born and Wesley was young he'd been engaged to a woman, but before they could marry she had died in a car accident, Aiden had been so devastated by her death it had taken him years to recover. Molly had felt awful hearing this story, her uncle had lost the love of his life, they never spoke of it after that, her uncle was a good man and she refused to question him about it and cause him pain.

Much of the evening was spent catching up on each other's lives and Molly updating them on Wesley, after the last few months she'd had it was comforting to be back in her childhood home with her family. Her jet lag soon caught up with her and she excused herself and made her way up the many stairs to her room, she wouldn't be living here permanently it was just for a couple of weeks until her penthouse was ready, her mother insisted if she wasn't going to live at home she would at least live somewhere decent and in a safe area, and she also insisted she would pay for, Molly knew it was pointless arguing with her mother she usually always got her own way. So for the next two weeks she was free to relax before moving into her new penthouse and starting her new job, and she was determined that's what she would be doing…absolutely nothing, and with that happy thought in her mind she collapsed onto her bed and fell asleep still fully clothed.

The two weeks of relaxing flew by but they weren't completely relaxing, she had to go shopping with her mother, who insisted she have a whole new wardrobe, she spent time catching up with her uncle who filled her in on all the jokers crimes, details her mother hadn't really wanted her to know, he told her about Rachel Dawes and Harvey Dents deaths, the hospital explosion, the incident with trying to get two groups of people on two ferries to blow each other up, killing a judge and the police commissioner, attempting to assassinate the mayor, as well as the many robberies and various other crimes he had committed in his short reign of terror over Gotham. Molly was shocked, even in Baltimore they had heard of the jokers crimes but she had never heard the extent and detail of them, how could one man create so much chaos.

' I admit I'm concerned about you working at Arkham, but mostly I'm concerned you'll be working with that mad man, for god sake don't make an enemy of him' Aiden said, the concern evident on his face,

' I have no intention of making him my enemy, chances are he wont even say a word to me and Chilton will take him off my patient list, apparently he's not the talkative type', Molly said this trying to take some of the worry from her uncle,

'Lets hope so and lets also hope he never escapes from there just in case' Aiden smiled, all signs of worry vanishing,

'Well I have to get to work'

' I thought you had retired'

' I did but I've started lecturing criminal psychology classes at Gotham University a few times a week, gives me something to do' he smiled leaving Molly alone in the kitchen.

She sat still for a moment, her uncle had been amazing to her family helping her mother co-run a property business and still continuing his classes as a lecturer at Gotham university. Still smiling she loved that all her family had kept their English accents despite living in America so long, she got up deciding to research the joker a bit more, in two days she would have her first session with him and part of her hated to admit she was intrigued to meet the man everyone feared so much, and she thoroughly enjoyed the fact that the more silent this man was the more aggravated Dr Chilton got.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Baggage

' Is this all of them yet' Aiden complained, he had every right to though he'd spent most of his day lugging boxes into Molly's new penthouse all day,

'Yeah that's it' Molly said, happy that all the boxes were finally inside, less happy at the prospect of having to unpack everything.

'Welcome to Mollywood, he said laughing, well if you don't mind I'll be getting myself home and crawling into bed' Aiden said smiling,

'No that's fine, thanks for all your help today' Molly hugged her uncle goodbye and turned to face the mountain of boxes, she checked her watch, 'hmmm' she thought 'might as well start getting all this junk unpacked'. Molly began the long task of unpacking; at 2:00 am she finally gave in though she did have most of it done she couldn't quite face the last few boxes. She sat down, lit a cigarette and once again picked up her patients files and opened the jokers, she stared at the pictures inside, two completely different looking men stared at her one in full makeup white, chalky face with patches of skin showing through where his skin creased or from where he'd frowned, dark black circled his eyes but looked, like the white paint, that it had been there a while, the black bled through cracks in his skin, his hair looked almost wild except for the fact it looked greasy and parts clung to his face, it was also dyed an acid green colour but even that had faded to reveal some natural brown hair, and his mouth painted red to cover the scars that gave his face a constant smile, but mostly she was drawn too his eyes they were dark, almost too dark, according to his vital statistics they were dark brown, but they appeared almost black, but even in the picture she could see they held character. She then looked at the picture next to it, the joker minus his war paint make up, it was strange to see the human man, scars and all, under the make up, but more startling was the fact that there was no change in expression, the scarred smile still there and the dark character in his eyes brighter than ever. This wasn't a man who hid behind the mask he painted on, she guessed it served him more to scare people or as a trade mark, signature look, but it wasn't something he hid behind, in fact she doubted the man feared or hid from anything. Taking one last drag on her cigarette before stubbing it out she finally put the files down and crawled into bed, in one day she would meet the man himself, and she was more intrigued than ever.

Molly had a restless night her sleep was constantly interrupted by the nightmares, she been suffering them ever since the Grentz case, images flooded her head of the things she'd had to witness when she'd helped catch him. Molly sat bolt upright in bed for the third time that night, she wiped the sweat from her forehead and lay back down, as awful as she felt for thinking it she wished she'd never worked on that case, she hadn't come out of it the same. Images of the basement where that man kept those girls flooded back to her, she'd never forget the smell of that place as long as she lived she lay back down in bed trying to think of anything but the Grentz case.

She woke early the next day, mostly because she'd forgotten to close the curtain and sunlight was now pouring in lighting the entire room. Within 2 hours of getting up she'd showered, eaten, finished unpacking and even had a small clean up. She had just lit her cigarette when the phone rang,

'Hello'

'Ahhh Dr Stone, I trust I didn't wake you'

'No, who may I ask is calling'

' My apologies we've haven't spoken in person or on the phone for that matter, my name is Dr Stanley Chilton'

'Oh well it's good to finally speak to you Doctor'

'Yes well I'll get straight to the point, some important business has come up and I wont be at Arkham tomorrow to show you around, so if your free we can do that today and at least you'll know where your going tomorrow and where everything is'

'Umm yeah sure that shouldn't be a problem I can be there in an hour, if that's ok?'

' Wonderful I'll have someone meet you outside, goodbye'

'Bye' Molly said slightly annoyed at being hung up on.

An hour later Molly pulled up outside the gates of Arkham Asylum, she was so busy staring up at the great stone building she didn't notice the gates opening, brought back to her senses by the sound of the tall, rusted, iron gates scraping and clanging together, she drove through slowly looking for who had opened them, looking to her left she saw a fairly elderly security guard smiling and waving her in, she returned the smile,

' At least someone's happy to be in Arkham' she thought

She drove a little further and parked. Getting out she saw an man standing at the front doors, he had to be in his 50's,his hair was greying and his skin slightly wrinkled but he gave her a warm welcoming smile as she approached, which she returned gratefully.

'Good afternoon I'm Dr James Price, welcome to Arkham Dr stone'

Molly couldn't help smiling when she heard Dr Price speak with an English accent; it made her feel more at ease,

'Nice to meet you'

'Well lets get inside Dr Chilton is eager to meet you'

'Wonderful', she said this slightly more sarcastically than she meant to but it prompted a smile and a small laugh from Dr Price.

'Ahhh Dr stone I presume' Dr Chilton exclaimed a fake smile plastered all over his aging face,

'So good you could join the Arkham family'

Molly saw in the corner of her eye that Dr Price was trying to hide laughter

'Good to be here' she again said more sarcastically than she meant to,

'Well if you'll both excuse me I have patients to attend to' Dr Price tried to say this calmly but the fact that he was stifling laughter came through in his voice and made Molly smirk.

' Yes carry on Dr Price, now Dr Stone if you'll follow me I'll give you a tour of Arkham and its grounds and then I'll take you to meet your patients',

'Erm yeah ok'

The tour seemed to take forever and Dr Chilton made small talk the whole way round asking her questions about previous places she'd worked and trying to get her to talk about the Grentz case, all of which she tried to answer with short answers whilst trying to distract him by asking questions about the asylum, when he finally got onto the subject of her patients.

'I realise you may have found it strange to see your patient list only had three patients on it, but you see they really are high profile patients that I'm hoping you'll have more success with than previous doctors here',

'Well I'll do my best'

'Oh I'm sure you will but these three can be so difficult, crane tries to diagnose the doctors and get them to talk to him as though they were the patient and he the doctor, Sloane I know you've spoken to before and with great success I hear, you must tell me your secret with him, the man hates me considers me his mortal enemy, can you imagine' he said laughing,

Molly didn't want to answer because if she did her answer would have been ' yes I can completely see why he thinks that of you, you irritating little man'; instead she merely nodded and smiled along with his laughter.

' And well your third patient I'm in no doubt you've heard of, the joker, monstrous man he really is, the nurses are terrified of him, three of my doctors refuse to have him as a patient because they say he wastes their time, does nothing but sit there staring, and if he does talk its to wind up a member of staff, one of the orderlies had a breakdown because of things the joker whispered to him, can you imagine the things he must have said',

' Well no but I'm sure he'll take great delight in telling me if I ask him'

'Yes well I suppose now is as good a time as any to meet and greet the terrible trio' he said this once again with that sickening fake smile plastered across his face, Molly merely nodded and followed him to the patients cells.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Meet The Patients

They walked to the end of a corridor where a nurse was hurrying out of a room, looking quite hysterical,

'Nurse Mitchell, what on earth is the matter',

Chilton asked this but Molly had a sneaking feeling he didn't really care what her response would be, she was a good judge of character, and this was a nasty man who loved nothing more than to belittle his staff and make them feel worthless, he deserved his own cell in here.

'That man is awful, why does he have to say such terrible things, he used to be so nice when he was a doctor here'

'Nurse Mitchell how many times do I have to tell you to ignore his comments, you go in you do your job you leave, that's all that is required of you, do you understand'

'Yes Dr Chilton',

She replied quietly, her voice still shaking. Molly gave her a sympathetic smile, which she returned weakly, Molly couldn't help feeling bad for her asylums were horrible places to work, some patients just had a way of getting under your skin.

'I apologise Dr Stone, we do have some very weak minded staff members here, not like you and me eh?'

'Yes' Molly replied faking a smile.

She watched as Chilton pulled out a card and swiped it in a small machine on the wall, he then typed in a four-digit code,

'You know we pride ourselves here at Arkham for our high security, no ones escaped here in years, and I intend to see it stays that way'

'Lets hope so, wouldn't want any disgruntled patients coming after us would we' Molly said trying to keep her sarcasm to as minimal as she could.

They entered the room together sitting at a bolted down table was Dr Jonathan Crane, his watery blue eyes observed Molly as she entered the room, she didn't drop her stare she held eye contact till he broke it,

'So Chilton you finally think you've found the doctor who's gonna cure me, though I have to admit she doesn't seem scared, though I suppose your previous case was a lot worse than this wasn't it doctor…'

' Molly Stone, and no you really don't compare to my previous case',

She said a small smile playing on her features,

'Well finally a doctor with guts, I look forward to our sessions Dr Stone',

She noticed the small smirk on his lips as he gazed past her at Chilton, who looked anything but happy,

' Well come Dr Stone, more patients to meet',

He said this as he pulled her arm, which she immediately snapped out of his grip, he looked at her with an expression of great surprise on his face,

'I'm completely capable of leaving a room without being man handled Dr Chilton',

She walked past him and waited outside, seconds later the sound of Crane laughing filled the silent hallway.

'Dr Stone, if you'll follow me',

He no longer seemed to want to bother putting on his act of kindness and hospitality, a fact she was grateful for because it meant she didn't have to make small talk with him.

They walked up down a flight of stairs and came to a slightly darker hallway, where they once again walked to end cell, these cells were different to the ones Crane was held in, these looked as though the entire front wall was missing but it had in fact been replaced with strong glass,

'Bullet-proof but not sound proof',

Chilton said as he flicked a switch, the cell lit up, standing perfectly still in the middle of the cell was Dr Ivan Sloane; he greeted her as he would an old friend.

' Good afternoon Dr Stone, I trust you are in better health than you were the last time we spoke'

' I am thank you for asking Dr Sloane',

She watched him calmly as he tilted his head up, closed his eyes and smiled,

'Still wearing the same perfume doctor, Chanel if I'm not mistaken?'

'Quite correct, I see you've still got strong senses and you very rarely are mistaken doctor',

Once again he gave her his small smile, which to anyone who hadn't met Dr Ivan Sloan would deem a disturbing and eerie smile, but Molly had become used to it, returning the smile politely.

' I look forward to talking to you again Dr Stone, it will be so nice to have a polite, pleasant conversation with someone who actually has manners'

He shot Chilton a small glare as he said this,

' Well Dr Stone I really don't have all day and we still have one more patient to see'

Chilton said this failing to hide his aggravation,

' Well goodbye for now Dr Sloane, and I'll see you tomorrow'

'Have a pleasant evening Dr Stone',

'Well our last patient takes us to the newly refurbished section of Arkham, which incidentally is also the maximum security ward',

Chilton said this walking quickly towards the stairs.

They reached the fifth floor of the asylum and walked down a hallway that had fewer and bigger rooms,

'You'll pass these cells everyday to get to your office upstairs Dr Stone, word of advice keep your head down and just keep walking, they're all so grumpy first thing in the morning'

Molly rolled her eyes; they came to a stop outside a large cell she noticed once again that a card and pin would be needed to enter the room, an orderly stood next to the door conversing with Dr Chilton,

'Is he secured'?

'Yes Dr Chilton, he didn't even put up a fight',

The orderly talking to Chilton was a fairly tall black man he had one of the kindest faces Molly had ever seen, he had to be in his forties, and he spoke calmly.

'Dr Stone this is Robert Jameson, he will also be working exclusively to you and your three high profile patients, mainly because for some reason beyond my knowledge they all seem to tolerate Robert, god knows why',

'Nice to meet you Dr Stone'

'Please call me Molly, nice to meet you too Robert'

They shook hands and smiled at one another she could easily see why Sloan liked Robert he was polite, well mannered and a genuinely kind man.

' Well let's go meet the monster shall we Dr Stone'

Molly and Robert exchanged looks at Chilton calling a patient 'monster', but her curiosity urged her forward and with one last smile of goodbye to Robert she entered the jokers cell.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: It's All Fun And Games…

Molly entered the large brightly lit cell after Dr Chilton, her eyes felt slightly dazed from the bright lights bouncing of the newly painted white walls, the room still had a slightly lingering smell of emulsion, her eyes then focused on the figure sitting bound in a straight jacket in the centre of the room. He sat perfectly still observing every movement she made and he couldn't help noticing her refusal to break eye contact with him, both broke the contact when a nurse rushed to the door Robert stood guard by. She whispered hurriedly to Robert and with a hint of panic and nervousness she spoke to the people in the room,

'Dr Chilton, we have a serious problem with a patient on ward b, it urgently requires your assistance'

'Fine, Dr Stone would you rather wait outside for me to return?'

'I think I'll be fine thank you Dr Chilton'

'Hmm well Robert will be outside when your ready to leave, and he can show you to your office'

'Thank you Dr Chilton',

He had already turned on his heel and she could hear him angrily scolding the nurse for interrupting him, she rolled her eyes, she somehow didn't see the two of them getting along, Robert interrupted her thoughts,

' I gotta close the door Molly, it's procedure, just call when you're done'

'No that's fine, thank you Robert',

He smiled reassuringly at her and closed the door; she turned to face her patient, the chaotic mad man of Gotham. He hadn't moved an inch, his eyes continuing to observe her, then his tongue slid out from his pursed lips and licked quickly almost serpent-like, she didn't even flinch when he did this and he noticed,

'Hiiii', he said in a very drawn out monotone voice,

She was slightly taken aback that he had spoken to her when he supposedly remained silent with staff, but she refused to show it, instead noting that he had spoken quite calmly and with no menace in his tone, he continued to speak,

'So you're my new doc'

He didn't move as he spoke his head still slightly down as he looked up at her, she decided if he was going to talk she may as well join him and make it a conversation, she noticed the chair that had been left in here for her and pulled it up to sit opposite him, still keeping eye contact she spoke,

'Hi, I'm Dr Molly Stone'

'Mind if I call ya doc'

'Whatever makes you comfortable'

'You don't look nervous doc, I like that, are you nervous and just very good at hiding it'

'No I'm not nervous, any reason I should be?'

'Most people are, it's the scars, do the scars not make you nervous doc?'

'No, I can honestly say I've seen worse'

'Ahhh of course you worked on that FBI case to help catch that Grentz guy, did you get to see pictures of what he did to those people, all those poor girls?'

'Yes'

'Are they as disturbing as all the papers were saying?'

'Probably more disturbing than any reporter knows',

The whole time they'd been talking they didn't break eye contact, in fact he barely blinked, and her curiosity was starting to get the better of her she had to ask,

'Why are you talking to me?'

'You're my doc aren't I supposeddd to talk to you?'

'But I mean from what I hear you barely say a word to any of the other doctors why talk to me?'

He licked his lips quickly and continued to stare, he opened his mouth to speak when the door opened and Dr Chilton walked in he looked angry and slightly flustered,

'My apologies Dr Stone, I think it's time I showed you to your office and we wrap this up for the day'

'Times up doc', he said playfully a small smile pulling the corners of his scarred lips,

She got up slowly still staring at the joker, Robert was at her side seconds later taking the chair out of the room, Dr Chilton walked out muttering under his breath, as Molly followed she turned back before closing the door, he still hadn't moved and he still had a smile on his face.

'See you real soon doc'.

She followed Robert and Dr Chilton up some stairs at the end of the hallway,

'Robert would you please go and release the clown'

'Yes Dr Chilton, again nice to meet you Molly, see you tomorrow'

' Yeah see you then nice to meet you too'

Robert walked back down the hallway and Molly followed Dr Chilton down a corridor to an office, her name was already on the door, she wondered if he'd put that up there before she'd even accepted the job.

'Well Dr Stone this is your office, there are times when you will have sessions with your patients in here but most of the time the sessions will take place in their cells'

He then picked up an envelope off of the desk and handed it to her,

'In here is your staff pass, security card that allows you to access your patients cells, the pin codes, a schedule for your patients, a few rules for the asylum and various other pieces of paperwork you'll need to read through'

' Ok I'll give these a read tonight'

'Well since I wont see you tomorrow I hope your first day goes well, if you have any problems you can ask Dr Price, now I really must attend to a matter downstairs so I'll have Robert escort you to your car'

'Thank you very much for all your help today Dr Chilton',

He nodded and left the room just as Robert was walking back, they began walking back down when they had left the floor the jokers cell was on Robert began to talk,

'You certainly made an impression on him'

'Chilton hmm he's a real ray of sunshine'

'No not him though don't get me wrong I don't think your what he expected, I was talking bout patient number three, the joker'

Molly stopped walking and looked at Robert,

'What?'

'He said you weren't the average 'doc' Chilton normally throws at him and you didn't seem nervous or afraid of him'

'Should I be?'

She asked Robert, smiling as they started walking again, Robert smiled,

'Most are but no I don't think you've got any reason to be afraid, if he didn't like you, you'd know it'.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Happiest Place On Earth

Molly woke to the annoying buzzing noise everyone comes to hate first thing in the morning…the alarm clock. She pulled herself out of bed and climbed into the shower, after she was done in the bathroom she went into the kitchen and turned the TV on she was surprised to hear a familiar voice,

'Yes were very excited to have Dr Stone join our team, I feel she will be a valuable asset to the Arkham family'

So that was part of his important business, announcing her to the press, well at least if she failed with her patients he'd look like an idiot. She lit a cigarette and gathered he paperwork as she continued to listen to background noise of Chilton lapping up the press attention,

'Dr Chilton is it true you have brought Dr Stone in to help with such high profile patients like Ivan Sloane and the joker?'

' It is true Dr Stone will be working specifically with those two patients as well as Dr Jonathan Crane, now I'm sorry that's all the questions I can answer today I do have an important meeting to get to thank you for your time good day'

Molly exhaled smoke and shook her head the man truly was a joke, at least she didn't have to put up with him today, she checked her schedule most of her day was free so she could meet the other staff members but she did have a three hour session with Sloane, annoyingly these three hours were split into three one hour sessions throughout the day. She stubbed her cigarette out and began getting ready for work she pulled on some jeans, a red shirt, dried her hair, did her make up, and began sorting all her files out. When she had finished sorting out her paperwork, she pulled on her black leather jacket and her black knee high boots, and walked down into the building car park, it only took 20 minutes to get to Arkham, but her uncle had warned her about Gothams morning traffic so she left early he wasn't wrong she hit traffic as soon as she left and it wasn't moving fast she lit another cigarette and waited for the traffic to move. She noticed people staring as they walked past she wasn't sure if they were looking at her because of the news or because of her gorgeous red Dodge Viper SRT-10, she loved her car, she noticed quite a few people drove nice cars in Gotham none quite so nice as the dark grey metallic Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 that pulled up next to her, she couldn't help staring it was nice, she was shocked when the window went down and she recognised the face behind the wheel she lowered her own window,

'Well well well the rumours are true Molly Stone back in Gotham'

'Hey Bruce long time no see', she said smiling

'Hey ready for the first day?'

'Yeah can't wait', she said laughing

The traffic finally started moving,

'I gotta go Molly I'll give you a call we can go for a drink and catch up'

'Yeah sounds good'

Bruce sped away, and she eventually managed to get to work with 5minutes to spare, Robert was waiting by the door for her,

'Hey Robert sorry if you've been waiting ages, traffic was a nightmare'

'No its fine Bob let me know you were here so I just got here'

'Bob?'

'Security guard at the gates'

'Oh, I got a lot of names to learn haven't I?'

'Oh yeah, might take you a while lets put it that way'

The first two hours went quickly she met various members of staff, and started sorting her office out when the time came for her first session with Sloane.

She walked down the stairs with Robert till they reached the floor with Sloane's cell on it; she looked down the hallway at the glass-fronted cells to see a chair in front of Sloane's cell,

'Chilton's idea I assume', she said eyeing the chair

'He wont let anyone have close contact with Sloane, says it's too dangerous'

'Hmmm, maybe he's acting on his own irrational fear', she said laughing

Robert laughed as they walked to the end of the hallway,

'Well I'll leave you two to your session'

Robert walked away and Molly looked at the chair, which had been placed against the stonewall opposite Sloane's cell, she picked the chair up and moved it nearer to the glass screened wall, noticing that Sloan had also moved his chair nearer.

'Good morning Dr Stone, you'd think he'd realise that with that much gap between us we'd practically have to shout at each other to have a conversation, would be very impolite to shout at one another like children'

'Couldn't agree more Dr Sloane'

'So Molly do tell are you feeling like your old self again since the Grentz case?'

'Not completely, but I'm hoping the old saying is right, you know the time heals all wounds quote that mothers tell they're daughters after their first heart break'

'How's the shoulder?'

'Still hurts, and its not completely healed'

'Do you mind if I have a look?'

' No, not at all', she pulled her shirt collar down to reveal a deep 5 inch wound in her left shoulder near to her chest,

'Dear dear dear, I see your doctor did a hack job of stitching that up, it'll leave a terrible scar you should sue him'

' It got infected twice'

'Surgeons today, they just don't care like they used too, how is your brother coping now the Grentz case is finally over?'

'Quite well considering everything that happened to him'

' You do amaze me Molly most people when faced with mad men like Grentz and live to tell the tale, end up in my place in asylums not helping others, but that's you, a born survivor, tell me do you ever wish you hadn't traded information with me Molly you shared very personal details about your private life with me?'

'No because if you and I didn't have our little quid pro quo sessions we never would have figured out where Grentz was keeping that girl, she would have died and Grentz could still be out their killing people'

' You would have figured it out Molly you're a smart woman, unlike many of the others who all claimed they'd solve that case in seconds were they given the chance',

'Thank you, so how's life back here at the happiest place on earth…well the happiest place on earth after Disneyland?'

' Oh it's as stimulating as ever, at least now I can have a decent conversation, well besides Robert, smart man, quite intellectual he's wasted here, but he enjoys his work here so I shouldn't complain'

'Somehow I don't think Dr Chilton hired me to have pleasant conversations with you'

'Yes but you and I both know that our sessions wont have the results he wants, besides I think he quite likes the idea of keeping me locked up here for the rest of my days'

'If he wants you locked up for the rest of your life why aren't you up in the maximum security section with the joker?'

' He couldn't get the permission from his superiors to move me up there, they like that in this cell I'm seen at all times removes the element of surprise, and you and I both know I'm quite a good escape artist when I want to be'

'Very true'

' So you met the clown prince of crime, he talked to you didn't he?'

'Yes how did you know, Robert tell you?'

'No I knew he'd talk to you, you know you've got all the patients in here talking, it was inevitable he would talk to you he's curious'

'Molly', Robert interrupted, 'the session times up'

'Ok thanks Robert, well Sloane I'll see you in an hour, she had forgotten how quickly an hour talking to Sloane could fly'

'Erm sorry to interrupt again Molly but Chilton's been on the phone he said something about a change in today's schedule, he wants you call him back when you get to your office'

' Ok well I better get going then don't wanna keep his highness waiting, I'll talk to you soon Sloane'

'Have a good afternoon Molly'

Robert and Molly walked back upstairs; Robert agreed to meet her outside so she could fill him in on the details.

'Hello Dr Chilton, you wanted to speak to me'

'Ah Dr Stone, thank you for getting back to me so quickly, regarding today's schedule I think one session with Sloane is enough, I'd like you to spend the rest of the day working with the joker'

' Ok may I ask why?'

'Because since I've heard that yesterday in a brief meeting he spoke more to you than he has to anyone else the whole time he's been here, besides his malicious whispers that see my staff run for the hills, I'd like you to make him your main focus, I'll give you your new patient schedule Monday, have a good day doctor, a good weekend and I'll see you Monday'

'Goodbye to you too' Molly said as he once again hung up on her.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Never Say Never

Molly made her way downstairs and outside, she made her way over to Robert who was standing talking to Dr Price, Robert noticed her first and patiently waited until she lit her cigarette and taken a couple of pulls before speaking,

'So how'd it go with our oh so happy boss?'

'Oh it was great, he wants me to work with the joker today, and possibly more he's cutting back my time with my other patients so I can work more with the joker'

'Hmm he's moving faster than I predicted, with his plan to get you working more with the joker I thought he'd at least give you a few weeks to settle in', Dr Price said a slightly shocked look on his face,

'Well I should get back in don't want to keep the joker waiting, Chilton would hate that', a small smile played on her lips at the end of her statement,

Molly flicked her cigarette butt away, slightly more aggressively than she meant to and walked back inside.

She made her way back up the stairs and went to her office first, she looked in the mirror of the small en-suite bathroom all the offices came with, she moved her collar down to look once more at the scar on her chest, it did look bad she really should go to the hospital and get a doctor to check it. When she left her office Robert was outside waiting for her,

'Hey Molly you want me to go tell Sloane what's happening?'

'Thanks Robert that would be great, I better get going got my new patient to see'

She walked down the small flight of stairs and walked down the brightly lit hallway to the jokers cell, swiping her card and entering the pin the walked into the room, he wasn't bound in a straight jacket this time, she frowned and looked at him, as if reading her mind he placed his hands on the table they were bound together by tight looking leather straps that appeared to need a key to unlock them, she looked back at him,

'That's it they're locking me in a room with the most dangerous man Gothams seen in years and all they did was tie your hands together' she said jokingly,

A small smile played on his lips and he glanced down, nodding his head slightly, she looked under the table to see his legs were bound one to each chair leg by the same straps.

'Hmm bit extreme don't you think',

His smile widened and his body shuddered in a small silent laugh, she pulled her chair up,

'So what shall we talk about today laughing boy',

She said this with a smile and his reaction stunned her slightly she expected him to get slightly offended by the nickname, but instead he laughed a loud almost menacing laugh.

'Doc I like you, you don't talk like them'

'What do you mean like them?'

'Well for a start the first thing you asked me wasn't 'and how are you feeling today?' the rest always start with that, not you though doc, you know why'

'Enlighten me'

'Cos your not like them, you don't talk like them cos your not one of them and you know it, and they know it and that's why they're all so curious about you and they're also very curious about me, the difference is they're not afraid of you'

'I don't know some of the nurses have avoided me since you spoke to me, they won't even make eye contact'

'You know everyone in here is a little too serious, for an asylum you'd think there'd be more laughing'

'Yeah and then all the staff can wear t-shirts saying 'you don't have to be crazy to work here…but it helps', I may have to bring that idea up with Chilton'

Once again he let out his menacing laugh, and she couldn't help but laugh herself.

' You see doc, there's no need to be so serious, so doc what do you think of Arkham?'

'I've said it before and I'll say it again it's the happiest place on earth right after Disneyland',

He laughed once again,

'And what do you think of our dear Dr Chilton?'

'Oh he really impressed me, I've never met such a small mind inside such a big head before'

He laughed again his head thrown back and beat his bonded hands against the bolted down steel table,

'Doc it's a funny world we live in, its like I always say if you gotta go, go with a smile' he laughed again, rocking the chair slightly,

' Are you ever serious?'

' I can be'

' When?'

' Are you trying to get me to talk doc?'

' Are you gonna answer all my questions with questions?' he smirked

' You're fiery doc I like that are you warming up to me yet doc?'

' Surprise another question, well I do like a good sense of humour' he laughed manically again and she smiled, he seemed genuinely excited,

' Doc I'm gonna enjoy our little chats I think'

' Lets hope I can say the same a few weeks down the line' he smirked confidently,

' So doc how'd ya know Sloane?'

' He was my patient before he was moved here'

' He likes you, he wouldn't eat you'

' Never say never'

' Such a lack of confidence in your patients doc'

' Are you saying if you ever escape you won't come after me?'

' Ahh well I can't promise you that doc'

' See never say never'

' You don't seem scared doc'

' Should I be?'

' Depends just how insane you think I am'

' Then I'm very scared' he laughed loudly again

She heard a gentle cough outside and Molly turned to see Robert standing outside waiting patiently,

' Well I'll see you tomorrow doc'

'Yeah tomorrow it's your turn to make me laugh'

He smiled a wide grin at her, that held slight menace, as she got to the door he stopped her,

'Hey doc, you really should get that cut checked out'

She looked down to her left to see a small part of the deep cut poking out from behind her shirt,

'I know cuts doc and that don't look good, it'll leave a good scar though'

'Thanks for the advice'

She walked outside as Robert went into the room a look of slight confusion mixing with a smile on his face, she waited for him to get back before they walked outside for a cigarette, she offered him one which he gratefully took and waited once more for her to take a couple of drags before firing questions at her.

'So it went well I take it, the whole hospitals talking, everyone heard him laughing what did you say to him?'

'Just my natural wit and charm shining through' she said laughing as she walked back into her office.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Cookie

Molly spent the rest of the day in her office writing up a report on her session with the joker, and with constant interruptions from various members of staff who found excuses to be in her office. As she was packing her things up to leave her phone rang, probably Chilton wanting an update she thought,

'Hello'

'Molly Stone how can you have been back two weeks and not even called me? I'm only your best friend but whatever,

'Hey Madeline, I'm sorry but everything's been so crazy with the move and the new job, I had actually planned to call you later to see if you were free anytime this weekend for a catch up, are you?'

'Well of course I am, I want to hear all about this new job, I know I just called you but I gotta go I've got loads of paperwork to get through but I'll come to yours tomorrow bout 8 and then we'll go for a drink, I cant wait to see your new place, that ok?'

'Yeah I'll see you then'

'Bye hun, so good to have you back'

'Good to be back, bye'

Molly grabbed the rest of her things, and began the long walk down the stairs she came to the hallway the jokers cell was on and noticed the door to his cell was open. She looked inside and he wasn't in the cell, feeling confused she left and continued the long walk downstairs to her car, as she reached the front doors she saw Dr Price,

'So how was the first day? I hear you made quite an impact on the joker'

'Well I don't know about that, but yeah not a bad first day'

'Well Monday will be even better Chilton will be back, no doubt with his ear to the door of the jokers cell'

' Don't remind me, I'm dreading it'

'You'll be fine cookie, see you Monday'

'Cookie?'

'Cute nickname for you, everyone has nicknames, bye cookie'

'What's yours?'

He didn't answer her, he laughed and continued to walk away, Molly walked outside digging her cigarettes and lighter out of her bag, she lit her cigarette enjoying the first drag as she walked away from the doors,

'Those things will kill ya doc',

She turned to see the joker standing still, wrapped up tightly in a straight jacket, she noticed Robert next to him bound to the straightjacket.

' So will knives doesn't stop you carrying them about'

'Touché doc'

'Why are you outside now?'

'Exercise time, I'm not allowed out when other inmates are out'

'I wonder why'

'Ouch doc that hurts, it cuts me deep',

Robert smiling in amazement at the conversation the two were having interrupted,

'Sorry to interrupt Molly but I gotta get Mr J back inside'

'No problem Robert I should get going'

'Night Molly have a good evening'

'Sweet dreams doc',

She watched as Robert led the joker back inside Arkham, he looked back a wide smile on his face. Molly shivered but not out of fear, there hadn't been any threat in his voice, it was more a shiver of excitement but she didn't know why.

Molly climbed into her dodge viper and sat still for a minute she looked up at the asylum windows and saw the small figures of Robert and the joker in the cell, a few seconds later the light was switched off.

She shook herself out of the trance, she couldn't explain why the man mesmerized her but she had a need to find out more about him, her natural curiosity drove her need to know more.

Molly woke up disgruntled and sweating she checked the clock next to her bed, 4am, she weakly climbed out of bed and walked to the bathroom. Switching on the light she checked the deep cut on her left shoulder wondering if it had become infected again, but it was still the same no changes at all and it didn't feel like it had the last two times it had become infected. She sighed looking at herself in the mirror, her long hair soaked in sweat, her face pale and the bags under her eyes were huge, and she couldn't figure out in her half asleep state what had woken her with such a start. She couldn't remember a thing. Irritated and now fully awake she walked to the living room, lit a cigarette and sat down looking out the large windows at Gotham city, still bathed in darkness she thought stubbing her cigarette out.

Another annoying noise woke Molly from her awkward sleep on the couch, it was her phone she groaned praying it wasn't Chilton, she was more than happy to see her uncles number flashing on the screen,

'Hey uncle, what do you mean by disturbing my sleep so early' she joked glancing at the clock to see it was now 8:30,

'Sorry did I really wake you?'

'No you did me a favour five more minutes sleeping like I was and I'd have had a stiff neck for days, how can I help you my favourite uncle?'

'I'm your only uncle', he laughed,

'And that's why you're my favourite', she replied laughing with him,

'How do you fancy coming and spending the day with your dear old mum and me' he asked,

'Less of the old you!' Molly heard her mother shout in the background,

'Love to', was all Molly could say in between laughs,

'Excellent see you soon Molly dolly', he said laughing at her childhood nickname,

'Oh less of the Molly dolly please', she said in her whiniest voice,

'Alright see you later'

'Bye'

'…. Mollipop'

She hung up on her uncle as he laughed hysterically; he's had countless nicknames for her and still continued to use them now.

She arrived an hour later and received the same anaconda death grip hug from her mother; her uncle was smirking at finally using her old nicknames. She then noticed the bags at the foot of the large staircase,

'Are you going somewhere?', she asked them both,

'Oh no', her uncle replied tauntingly, 'those aren't ours', his grin widened

' Whose are they then?'

'Mine', a familiar voice said from behind her,

She smiled and turned around slowly to see Wesley standing behind her smiling,

'OH MY GODDDD', she shrieked excitedly, 'what are you doing here?'

'Missed my family so I'm moving to Gotham, Commissioner Gordon was kind enough to give me a job so here I am', he said still smiling whilst trying to fend off his sisters interpretation of their mothers death grip hug.

Molly was too happy to pay much attention to the conversation that followed, and eventually after giving quick answers to any question directed at her, she and Wesley went for a walk round the grounds to talk between themselves.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

After spending the whole day with her family Molly finally pulled herself away and drove back to her penthouse to get ready to meet up with Madeline. She was greeted by a flashing red light on her answer machine; rolling her eyes she reluctantly pressed the button to listen with a strong feeling this was going to ruin her happy mood.

'Dr Stone', came Dr Chilton's voice, she had been right happy mood gone,

'I just wanted to congratulate you on your progress with our clown prince; lets hope the progress keeps on going. Of course I'm not just calling to praise you',

'Knew that was too good to be true', Molly muttered her good mood disappearing more rapidly by the second,

'I have the new schedules ready for you, if you could come and pick them up as soon as you get this I'd be grateful you'll need to be prepared for each patient after all, thank you Dr Stone I'll expect you before I leave today,

Molly sighed glancing at the clock, 4:30 she could be back and get ready in time, grabbing her keys she left to make the drive to work on her day off,

'He really is inhumane who calls employees into work on their day off what a total basta…' her rant was interrupted by her phone ringing she stopped outside her car checking who it was before she answered,

'Wesley I only left half an hour ago you can't be missing me already you've gone soft big bro' she answered laughing,

'HA HA very funny, no I have to ask you something serious actually'

'Ok go ahead I think I can handle it'

'You know today I told you that the West family were going into witness protection?'

'Yeah that's not something you really ever forget is it Wes, What about it?'

'They're new life will be in Gotham'

'What! The FBI wants to keep them safe so they're sending them to Gotham, smart move I must say'

'There's a method in their madness Moll'

'And that would be?'

'Iris West still hasn't spoken a word since you got her out of Grentz's basement. Her parents got desperate and asked a counsellor for help but she wouldn't talk to her either, so the counsellor asked Iris to write down the name of someone she would talk to and guess who's name she wrote down?'

'Mine', Molly was aware how choked up her voice sounded and held onto the car for support, she hadn't seen Iris since that awful day.

'Moll you ok?'

'Yeah I'm fine, I'm fine, erm so when do they move here?'

'They're already on their way. They'll get there tomorrow; her parents want to start sessions right away, and the FBI have informed Chilton all about it, so any sessions you have with Iris have to be at Arkham'

'At Arkham! They're not serious you can't take a ten year old girl into Arkham'

' I'm sorry Moll, Jim Gordon and I really pushed for anywhere else but they wont have it the FBI are saying that at least in Arkham she's safe all the maniacs are locked up in cells, not waiting round a corner for her'

'No wonder Chilton's called me into work, I can't believe they involved him the West's aren't safe while he knows about them, the mans so stupid he'll let it slip to the press'

'No he wont not unless he wants to become an inmate at Arkham, he knows what'll happen to him if he talks, it's safe Moll and she needs help'

' I didn't say I wasn't going to do it, I'm just not overly happy about it that's all'

'Don't worry Moll, Jim and I have plans no inmate will see Iris enter or leave Arkham at any point, it'll be a total secret, trust me she'll be fine'.

Molly couldn't even remember driving to Arkham; it was all a blur her mind raced with the new information she'd just received. She slowed down so Bob had time to open the gates, he smiled at her as she drove past and she returned the smile half-heartedly and parked her car. She climbed out to see Robert walking with the joker round the grounds and even more disturbing a man with a camera exciting the front doors of Arkham. Molly saw red she was furious, Robert evidently saw this sudden change in her demeanour began walking faster towards her the joker keeping pace with him, Molly was storming towards the man who was obviously a journalist and she was ready to tear him a new one, she hated journalists. She'd had no problem with them until the Grentz case when one of them had snuck into her hospital room to try and get pictures of Molly unconscious in intensive care. Her pace had slowed while she remembered waking up in hospital to see Wesley screaming every obscenity under the sun as he threw the man out. She was pulled from her memories by a hand closing around her arm and pulling her back, it was Robert,

'Calm down Molly he's not here for the reason you think he is'

'Why is he here at all?',

Robert didn't need to answer seconds later Molly saw an ambulance drive round the building from the back and park in front of the entrance to the asylum,

'What happened Robert?'

'Did you meet nurse Brundle?'

'Young girl only just out of medical school, got here about a week before me right?'

'Yeah… she err…she was found dead in Barbers cell today'

'Oh my god, how?'

Robert didn't need to answer the hand gesture the joker used with his free hand gave Molly all the answers she needed, she watched as he raised his bound hands and slid one finger across his throat, Robert saw as well and nodded,

'To put it bluntly that's exactly what happened, he broke Dr Prices Vase in his office today during their session, he must've snuck a piece out and he used it to kill poor Sally, poor lil thing didn't stand a chance against that guy'

For the second time that day Molly felt sick to her stomach,

'Molly I hate to ask this but Bobs gonna need some help keeping the press away from the gates you ok if I secure our guy to you till one of the other guys comes to take him in?'

'Sure' Molly said not taking her eyes of the developing scene, the ambulance crew were now bringing out Sally's body, Dr Price followed grief etched on his face, and Molly knew he was blaming himself. She felt Robert securing the cuff to her wrist and he secured the jokers arms together before attaching them to the other cuff hanging from Molly's arm.

'I'll be as quick as I can Molly I promise'

'No worries Robert, I'm fine' her voice once again took on the quiet, chocked characteristic as she finally turned away to see Robert walking down the drive towards the gate.

She looked at the joker, for the first time since she'd met him he had a serious look on his face,

'Do you think he feels guilty?' she asked him quietly turning her attention back to the ambulance,

'Nottt onee bittt' he dragged each word out enunciating each of them his expression never changing,

'Tell me doc do you think Grentz ever felt bad for hurting those girls?'

She took a deep breath and turned to look at him again,

'Nottt onee bittt' she replied mimicking him but not laughing at the joke, and before she could stop herself she asked him,

'Do you ever feel guilty when you hurt people?'

'Not so far'.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: The Trick Is To Keep Breathing

Molly pulled the door to the jokers cell shut, he hadn't said another word but after his answer she wasn't sure she wanted him to. She called Madeline and re-scheduled their catch up. She felt as though everything was crumbling around her slowly to top it all off she was dreading tomorrow, she felt awful for thinking that she knew Iris needed her help and it was her job to help, so why did she have that horrible feeling in her stomach?

She barely slept that night, and in the early hours of the morning after practically no sleep and too many cigarettes she showered, dressed and got in her car to go to work about two hours early. As she pulled up to the gates at Arkham Bob was there he looked more solemn than usual but she expected that everyone in Arkham would be quiet today, she walked to her office listening to every footstep she took as it echoed off the silent walls. She had just got past the door to the jokers cell when she heard him,

'Couldn't sleep doc?'

She paused but continued walking, when she got to her office she ditched her bag and jacket on her chair and walked back to his cell.

She hesitantly swiped her card and punched in the code, walking into the room she saw him sitting on his bunk, restrained to the wall by his straight jacket. She closed the door and sank down against the wall next to the bed, she felt like all the energy had been sucked out of her.

'Bad dreams doc?'

'Didn't get a chance to dream' she said quietly

'Why too excited about today and your new patient?'

That woke her up instantly, her head snapped up to look at him, his lips held a small smile, and he continued to stare at her as he always did.

'How do you know about it?'

'Heard Chilton bragging about it, he's very exciteddd' he said the last word in his slow dragged out way.

'Oh great! It'll be all round Arkham then, and someone will blab to the press and Iris will be in danger again, I can't believe him!'

'Relax doc he only told Pricey about it, because he's the one that's taking Crane off your hands, gets your back up though doesn't it doc? Her being here, relying on you for help once again, depending on you, do you notice doc no one outside of Arkham seems to care that poor nurse was murdered yesterday, and yet if the press were to find out that one little girl was about to set foot in Arkham and they'd all lose their minds!'

She counted the amount of times he licked the corners of his lips reaching for the scars during his speech, and she hated to admit it but he was right there had hardly been anything on the news about sally's murder.

'You see doc they don't care one little nurse means nothing to the people of Gotham, and it's a lack of caring that drives people a little crazy, look at Dent'

Molly looked up at him there was no smile on his face now he was staring at the blank wall ahead of him,

'Tell me about the day you found her doc, down in that basement with a monster, where you scared?'

'Does seeing her mean you have to remember every little, tiny detail about that basement? Does the smell of the place come back to haunt you? Do you remember Grentz creeping around down there?'

Molly went cold the thoughts were already coming back to her and she couldn't stand it,

'You wanna know a trick to get you through it doc?'

She looked up at him and nodded,

'The trick is to keep breathing'

She lowered her head again and smiled,

'Times up for today', she said pulling herself up and leaving his cell she looked back to see him with his trademark grin etched on his face.

Molly sat outside in the cold the joker's words echoing through her mind, she could see how easy it was for him to get to the staff in this place.

She watched Dr Price get out of his car he looked tired and gaunt. He sat down next to Molly and she offered him a cigarette and the extra cup of coffee she'd brought with her, he smiled accepting them gratefully,

' You look like I feel' she said taking a drag on her cigarette

' You have a rough night too?'

' Every nights a rough night, this one just happened to be up there with the worst of them'

' Molly if you ever need to talk, you know you can come to me'

' Don't let Sloane hear you say that' she smiled at him jokingly

' He's quite fond of you isn't he?'

' In a way yes I think he is, he knows a lot about me'

' Yes I heard of your unique tactic to get him talking, how much of your life did you have to divulge to get answers?'

' I just answered his questions, I've got nothing to hide, I'd do it again to stop people like Grentz'

' I think we all would put in your position' he stood up stretching and draining the coffee,

' Well once more into the breach' he smiled and walked inside, Madison realised she was shaking, it wasn't from the cold it was the thought of seeing iris again.


	11. Chapter 11

Sorry for the long wait, hope you enjoy, please review x

Chapter 11: Deeper

Molly sat at her desk, she tapped her fingers on the desk; it was a nervous habit. It was 10:55, Iris should be here in a few minutes, Molly felt her stomach twist as her nerves doubled thinking about it. Molly jumped as her phone rang; she took a deep breath and composed herself,

' Hello' her calm, still tone hid her nerves well,

' Molly its Jim' his tone was breathless and he spoke quickly,

' Jim, what's wrong?' Molly could tell from his tone he was worried

' Iris is missing and…'

' And?'

' Grentz had escaped' molly sank into her chair

' When?'

' The guard checked on him at 3am he was there, at 5 am he was gone, no one knows how he escaped'

' And now Iris is gone, Jim we have to find her'

' I know, her parents are missing too, Molly you know this man how much time do we have?'

' I…I…I don't know Jim' her voice broke halfway through

' We'll find them Molly, after all we have new help now'

' Batman?'

' Yes, he wont sit by while Grentz is out there'

' I hope you're right Jim'

' So do I'

They hung up and Molly instantly grabbed her card and keys and ran, she didn't stop until she reached the level Sloane was being held on, she ran to his cell and stopped, confused,

' Where is Sloane?' she asked an orderly who was cleaning nearby

' He got shipped out to Maine last night, something about an old case he helped on' Molly sighed and slammed her fists against the glass front.

Molly walked back upstairs, she rubbed her face, how could she stop Grentz without Sloane's obscure hints? Robert was just leaving the jokers cell as she walked down the corridor; she smiled at Robert,

' I need a word with laughing boy Robert'

' No problem I'm just down the hall if you need me' she smiled and nodded, the joker watched her quietly as she sat down opposite him; she rubbed her face and exhaled slowly,

' Penny for your thoughts doc'

' Grentz has escaped and Iris and her family are missing' he nodded and licked the corner of his lips,

' Sloane's been shipped off to Maine'

' And you want an insight into the inner workings of Grentz?'

' No, you can't give me that'

' Then why are you here doc?' she shook her head and smiled

' I don't know' he smiled,

' You know doc you're really nothing like them'

' How so?'

' They're all running around trying to look like they're doing something'

' And I'm sitting here doing nothing'

' I didn't say that, put yourself in Grentz's mind doc, if you were him what would you do?'

' Send a message, cause some panic, and become even more infamous'

' Bingo'

' He won't hurt Iris yet, he'll kill one of her parents'

' No he wont kill them, he'll torment them then set them free to worry about what he's doing to their daughter' she rubbed her face again

' Fuck' she said dejectedly

' Clocks ticking doc'

' I'm aware of that'

' Tell me doc is Grentz a smart man?'

' Not really, why?'

' Where did he hide them last time, all those little girls?'

'In the basement of his uncles old house, again why? What are you getting at?'

' I'm just saying what's so special about his uncle?' she looked up an expression of realisation crossed her face,

' Sloane once hinted that Grentz was the way he was because he was abused as a child by a relative'

' Maybe…an uncle?'

' He wouldn't go back there he's not that stupid'

' Is said uncle still alive?'

' I think so'

' Maybe you should try him first?' she stood up and walked towards the door, she paused and turned around,

' Why are you helping me, don't like perverts is that it?'

' No I don't but mostly because I don't want him stealing my thunder' he smiled seriously at her as she walked out, she decided not to add more to her already jumbled mind by trying to interpret his last sentence.

She called Jim and passed on her thoughts about the uncle, Jim jumped right to it and joined several of his men in going to Grentz's' uncles house. She sat at her desk and tapped her fingers; she was looking through her old case file on Grentz when the phone rang,

' Hello…Jim is that you? Did you find them?'

' Sorry to disappoint you Molly'

' Sloane? Is that you?'

' Indeed, how goes the hunt for iris?'

' Slowly, how comes they let you use a phone I thought you weren't allowed to contact anyone?'

' I wouldn't say they let me' Sloane was cryptic but she understood the gruesome hidden meaning in his message,

' Sloane what have you done?'

' Turn on the news' she fumbled with the remote before managing to get the TV on and stared at the news in horror,

' Oh god Sloane, why?'

' They were very rude, plus I had an opportunity and I took it'

' Did you have to do that though?' she winced as the reporter described what Sloane had done to the two policemen who had been guarding him,

' I'm afraid they gave me little choice, Molly they wont find her'

' What?'

' They've gone to the uncle's I presume?'

' Yes but to where he is now and the old house'

' I can confidently say they will find said uncle quite dead'

' You can't know that'

' It's an educated guess, molly I have to go now but I will keep in touch'

' No help me…please Sloane?' her voice cracked at the end of her sentence

' Look deeper Molly, people are not born monsters they are made monsters, Grentz was a monster long before his uncle, look deeper' she heard the receiver click and the long drone of the dialling tone moaned endlessly.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Sirens

Molly relentlessly ran her fingers through her hair as she looked through all of the notes she had on Grentz. It was like slamming her head against a brick wall, she contacted everyone she knew who would have information on Grentz and waited impatiently for them to fax or email it to her. She read through page after page but there was nothing here she didn't know, she rubbed her face with exhaustion as Dr price walked timidly into her office followed by Robert,

' Molly' Dr price said quietly, she looked up

' I got nothing' she was aware of how broken she sounded

' Take a break, fresh eyes will help, plus Robert has a suggestion' she looked hopefully at Robert,

' Well the press here in Gotham went crazy for the Grentz case, they did profiles on him and spoke to anyone who'd come into contact with him, maybe the old papers would help?'

' I didn't even think of that, could we get them?' she looked at Robert and was filled with new enthusiasm,

' Already on it, my brother in law works for the paper he's going through the archives now as we speak' Molly smiled

' Thank you so much Robert' he smiled shyly

' Now will you take a break?' Dr Price said smiling warmly at her, she nodded and followed the two men out of her office.

They stood outside smoking and drinking the lukewarm coffee that Arkham served, Molly was anxious she knew the clock was against them. All three of them jumped Robert spilt coffee everywhere as the Arkham sirens blared out over the grounds,

' What the fuck is that?' Molly shouted

' The siren it means we have an escape' Dr price shouted back, the three of them ran inside, all of Arkham was in uproar, nurses were screaming and patients were shouting as they were moved to other cells. All of them rushed around trying to find out who had escaped, Dr Chilton was furious, he shouted at anyone that crossed his path,

' I want all doctors to check their patients, I want it reported directly to me who has escaped' he stormed away to his office as Molly and Dr price walked upstairs to check their patients, it was easy for Molly she only had one now Sloane was gone and Crane had been transferred. She walked down to the cell near her office and swiped her card, the system beeped and she opened the door.

Molly sat in her apartment, she was still overwhelmed with relief that the joker had been sitting in his cell with his trademark grin. She rifled through the old newspapers Roberts brother in law had delivered and read ever article on Grentz, Robert had been right the Gotham press had gone to town on this case. She read them all but they mostly interviewed the same people and got the same answers, she did come across one though that made her grab her phone and call Jim Gordon,

' Jim its Molly, any news?'

' We found his uncle, he's dead' she rubbed her face, she couldn't believe Sloane had been right,

' Then we went to the old house where he kept the girls, we found iris's parents there'

' Are they all right?'

' No I don't know what he did to them but they're completely shell shocked they cant speak, they're at Gotham general now being treated, I'm sorry Molly we have no news on iris'

' Jim I'll be honest I figured that would be the case; I need you to get me an address'.

Molly had to wait for Jim to get the address she needed. She turned on the TV and flicked until she got to the news,

"_Our main headline tonight, a mass breakout has occurred at Arkham asylum in the last hour, we are still waiting to hear which of the most dangerous patients has escaped though it has been said that the joker has definitely escaped, sources tell us that an alarm was raised earlier today but it proved to be false…"_ Molly couldn't believe it, her phone rang and she answered still staring at the garishly made up newswoman reporting the story,

' Hello'

' Molly it's James Price, have you heard?'

' Yes I just this minute saw it on the news, is it true is he out?'

' Yes, and eight others with him'

' Fuck I bet Chilton's going insane'

' Ooh just a tad you know him he never overreacts to anything' he said sarcastically

' Well I'm out of a job that's all my patients gone'

' Molly please be serious, he talks about you a lot I'm worried he might…'

' Come after me? No I don't think he will, he'll have bigger plans than that James'

' Perhaps but please be careful Molly, any news on Iris?'

' Uncle's dead, parents are shell-shocked no iris, no Grentz' she said grimly

' Just like Sloane said' he said in amazement

' I knew he'd be right he always is, I could really do with him being around though'

' Where do you think he's gone?'

' Who knows, Sloane's a smart man he can immerse himself into any society and stay hidden' Dr Price sighed

' I should go Molly Chilton's out for blood, be careful'

' I will' she hung up and her phone immediately began to ring again

' Hello'

' It's Jim, I've got the address you asked for'

' Great Jim what is it?' he told her and she noted it down

' Molly who is she to Grentz?'

' Old neighbour who was present from the day he was born till the day he ran away I'm hoping she can help'

' Do you want me to go with you?'

' No I can handle this just keep looking for her Jim'

' We are and now we get Arkham escapees as well, is it true Molly has the joker escaped?'

' Yes I'm sorry Jim he has'.

She couldn't wait till the morning she jumped in her car and drove, it was mid morning the next day when she finally stopped. The street looked almost deserted though she knew all the houses had residents, she walked over to number 15 and rang the doorbell, an elderly lady answered and instantly smiled warmly,

' I know that face I saw it in the papers, you've come about him I assume?'

' Erm…yes, I'm Molly'

' I know dear, I'm Mrs Sally Fraser come in' Molly walked into the house, it was cold and had a damp smell to it,

' Have a seat dear would you like some coffee?'

' Yes please' she sat in silence as she heard Sally in the kitchen, her phone vibrated in her pocket,

' Hello?' she whispered

' Molly where are you?' it was Sloane she knew his voice anywhere

' I tracked down his old neighbour I'm at her house, why?'

' Get out!'


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Scraping

Molly felt her heart seize up in fear; she listened to the sound of china clattering in the kitchen,

' Sloane what are you talking about?'

' Molly think about it, I told you this went back further than his uncle it was one of his parents, I don't know which one, this woman knew all about the abuse he suffered and did nothing to help him'

' Oh shit he blames her as much as everyone else, I have to get her out!'

' Molly move quickly' he hung up and she jumped to her feet running to the kitchen. She burst into the kitchen and sally dropped the two mugs she'd been carrying in surprise,

' Good god dear you scared me…what's wrong…oh god' she was staring past Molly into the hallway; Molly turned slowly and saw the tall, lanky figure standing in the front door. No one moved for a few seconds Molly could hear sally hyperventilating behind her and then Grentz broke into a run. She turned to see Sally was running for the back door, she didn't get time to react as Grentz's arms slammed around her neck, choking her.

He walked slowly around the apartment looking at the photos and flicking through the files that were scattered all over the floor. He walked through to her bedroom, the bed sheets were tangled and he leant down and smelled the pillow. He walked back through to the lounge and noticed the red light flashing on her answering machine, he pressed the play button and listened;

"Molly it's Jim don't go to the neighbours house, we received an anonymous phone call saying Grentz would go after her, Molly please if you're there don't go"

He smiled and walked slowly out of the apartment, laughing quietly to himself as he went.

Molly opened her eyes slowly, her head was pounding and she groaned, she turned her head slowly to the side to see sally unconscious next to her with a head wound. She groaned again as her head began to throb, the room was dark and it smelt like oil and damp, she sat up and looked around as she did the door opened and Grentz's tall silhouette filled it blocking out most of the light. He walked in and closed the door, she heard Sally mumble and Grentz walked past her and stood over Sally,

' Where's Iris?' she said groggily, he ignored her and began to unwrap a small bundle, he picked sally up and laid her on a wooden table, Molly's stomach lurched as he flicked on a light bulb above the table and she saw the glint of silver.

Half an hour later the room was filled with Sally's screams, Molly couldn't help crying as the elderly woman begged for her life, Grentz was merciless he didn't acknowledge either of their pleas, instead he mumbled to himself,

' Should have helped me…old bitch…. could've stopped them…they did it…you all deserve to die…you should all feel my pain'.

Grentz continued to mutilate Sally's body long after she'd died, he was furious as he sliced and hacked at her withered skin until there was hardly anything left. Her head was founding and her mouth was so dry it was sticking to her teeth,

' Where's Iris?' she said hoarsely, Grentz once again ignored her, he lent over her and she felt a sharp sting in her neck.

He walked through the industrial area at the edge of Gotham, Molly was all over the news, her disappearance and Grentz's escape had made big news, though not big enough to overshadow his escape. He'd managed to find one of the junkies in Gotham who always knew where every seedy criminal was, if the junkie had misled him he would have to carve his face up, he though smiling to himself.

Molly opened her eyes, the coppery smell of blood filled the room and she turned to see the mess that had been Sally had been cleaned away and the surgical instruments were soaking in a jar of clear solution. She couldn't move her limbs felt like lead and she ached, she heard the door creak open and she was lifted up onto the table,

' Where's Iris?' she said groggily as he dropped her body onto the cold wood, she turned her head to see him unwrapping another bundle of scalpels and various other instruments and laying them out,

' They'll know you've got me' she said in a croaky voice, he remained silent and began to cut up the middle of he vest. Molly's breath quickened as she watched him pick up a razor sharp scalpel, she remembered the last time she'd gone up against Grentz, the blade scraping against her chest bone. She watched him inspect the blade, his grizzly, scarred face broke into a private smile, only he knew what it was that was making him smile with so much glee, it was the only time she'd seen some life in those dead eyes,

' Where is Iris? If you're going to kill me does it really matter if you tell me?' he seemed to think about it for a moment, then he spoke

' Why do you care what happens to her?' she heard the tinge of an accent, she'd never heard Grentz talk, few had,

' She's a child'

' I was a child no one helped me'

' So why inflict what you suffered on others?'

' No one is innocent' he said as he slammed the blade into her side, Molly screamed at the top of her lungs as he dragged the blade through her flesh. She screamed until her voice gave out and she thought her body might be on fire, she could feel the warm blood oozing over her abdomen, she felt sick and her hair was soaked with sweat, but Grentz didn't stop. She felt like he'd sliced her entire stomach open and ripped her apart, when she raised her head she had a jagged cut about 6 inched long going from her hip and up her stomach. She felt herself growing drowsy and weak from the blood loss, it really hit her that no one was coming, no one would find her and stop Grentz, he'd killed Sally, he was killing her and he would kill Iris.

He moved slowly through woods that bordered Gotham, he could see a dim light ahead and he quickened his pace. He found the log cabin minutes later and pushed the door open, his favourite knife was tucked up his sleeve as he silently crossed the damp wooden floor. The trapdoor in the floor that led to the basement was slightly ajar and he could hear the moans of torturous pain drifting out of there, he looked over to the corner to see some old sack material covering a dead body, he knew from the withered skin on the hand protruding from the material that it wasn't her. He walked down the steps and saw Grentz slowly carving at her flesh, he couldn't understand what had driven him to find her and what was making him want to slice Grentz up now, all he knew was he was furious.

Molly opened her eyes, she felt hazy and thick headed and she couldn't place the man that was standing over her, it wasn't Grentz, her mind managed to register that. She tried to talk but as she did the figure became aware of her more conscious state and she felt pressure in her neck followed by an uncontrollable desire to sleep.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Glory

Molly opened her eyes, she knew this room, it was her room. She looked around the room and tried to sit up, she instantly wished she hadn't, the pain that shot through her stomach was unbearable and she let out a gasp as she flopped back down weakly onto the cold sheets. She tried to remember what had happened but the last thing she could remember was Grentz slicing her open, her painful gasp had alerted someone to her presence because she could hear movement outside her bedroom door. Molly felt panic rise in her, what if it was Grentz back to finish what he'd started? She couldn't have been more shocked when Jim Gordon walked through the door,

' Oh thank god, how are you Molly?' he said sitting next to her

' I'm hurting, why am I at home not to tell you how to do your job but shouldn't I be in the hospital?'

' You were briefly but the media has created a storm and we had a lot of problems trying to keep the press away and their photographers from trying to get pictures of you'

' I don't understand, how did you find me?'

' In truth…we didn't, you were brought to us'

' By who?'

' Sloane believe it or not'

' What!'

' Yes, he said you were brought to him but he refuses to name by who, and he stitched you up, cleaned the wounds, made sure you were stable and brought you to us'

' That medical history's come in handy then, where is he now?'

' Back in Arkham, you're family are in the lounge, do you want to see them?' she ignored him as a burning question hit her,

' Have you found Iris?'

' No…I'm sorry Molly there's been nothing and Grentz is still missing' she sighed and slumped back against the pillows,

' I'll send someone in' Jim stood up and left her alone, her mother walked in still wiping her eyes.

She had to fend off question after question from her mother, her brother, her uncle, her friend Madeline stopped by and spent most of the visit crying, she received flowers from Bruce and Alfred and James and Robert sent her a big bunch of orchids. Three weeks passed, there was still no sign of Iris or Grentz; Molly went to sleep every night having nightmares of Grentz looming over her wielding a scalpel. She got up and got dressed, she walked down to the garage and climbed in her car and sped down the street. She pulled into Arkham and walked through the quiet halls, there were certainly less patients here since the break out, she walked to Sloane's cell and found him sitting on his bed looking out through the glass, he smiled as she approached and dragged a chair across the floor to sit in front of his cell. It stood up and picked up his chair and sat in front of her, she winced as she moved around in the seat trying to get comfortable,

' How is your injury?'

' Healing nicely, thank you Sloane you had a chance at freedom and you gave it up to help me'

' Oh I imagine I won't be here long'

' Don't tell me anything I don't want to know' she said smiling

' So I suppose you have questions?'

' Well yes…mostly I want to know who brought me to you so you could stitch me up?'

' I didn't stitch you up'

' Yes you did I was told someone brought me to you and you stitched me up and brought me back'

' No when you were brought to me you'd already been cleaned and stitched up'

' By who?'

' He asked me not to say' Sloane said smiling

' Sloane, please tell me'

' Oh I really cant Molly but don't fret I'm sure all will become known soon'

' You have to be cryptic don't you?'

' Do you really need me to answer that?' he said smirking as she stood up and slowly walked away, wincing and groaning as she did. Her painkillers were wearing off so she sat outside on the wall and lit a cigarette,

' Those things will kill you' James said as he sat next to her

' Possibly but since someone tried to gut me like a fish recently I'd say I've earned the right to smoke' he smiled and put an arm around her,

' How are you feeling?'

' Sore mostly…worried…a little confused'

' Can I do anything?'

' No I'm not even sure there's anything I can do anymore'

' They'll find Iris Molly, you've done all you can' she nodded and the two of them watched as another patient was brought to Arkham.

She drove home and climbed into the elevator, she closed her eyes and leant against the railing and took a few deep breaths as her abdomen throbbed with new raw pain. She opened her eyes as the doors pinged open and she trudged out and walked a few steps to her door, she walked inside to find her whole apartment lit up, she hadn't left the lights on, it was broad daylight when she'd left. She walked cautiously forward towards the bedroom and pushed the door open slowly, she walked slowly into the room and saw the French doors that led to the small balcony wide open. Molly's heart was thumping violently as she crossed the brightly lit room and walked out onto the balcony, there was no one, nothing at all, she walked back and closed and locked the doors and the curtains. She turned around and a hand instantly slammed over her mouth and she stared into those dark eyes. She felt panicked and her stomach was killing her as a blade was held against her cheek,

' Shhh' he said forcing her backwards she walked and he indicated for her to sit down on the bed. She sat down and he removed his hand and the blade, he walked over to her bedside cabinet and picked up her pain pills and a glass and handed them to her,

' I don't understand you at all' he cocked his head to the side and watched her as she took two of the pills and drained the glass of water,

' Feeling better doc?'

' Feeling shocked laughing boy, why are you in my apartment, shouldn't you be reigning terror over Gotham?'

' Perhaps but I am enjoying keeping them waiting, they're all so scared'

' Yeah well I know how they feel' she said groaning and placing a hand on her stomach,

' You don't seem scared of me doc, you never have?'

' Very wrong I am scared of you, you're unpredictable'

' You're not exactly predictable yourself doc, how many psychologists go running after a psycho and are willing to get carved twice to save someone?'

' The foolish ones?' she said jokingly, she couldn't laugh it hurt too much

' You're not like them doc, I've always said so, you're not afraid to look deep into the eyes of insanity'

' Are we talking about you or Grentz?' he smirked and sat down next to her

' How's the stomach?'

' Hurting'

' Well I did my best doc but as you can see I'm not the best at stitching' he said using the blade to point to his scars that extended from the corners of his lips up his cheeks,

' It was you?'

' I found you when he was still carving you up, I followed you to be accurate'

' Well that's not creepy at all'

' Anyone else would be grateful'

' I am but why take me to Sloane and why tell him not to tell me it was you?'

' I wanted a doctor to look you over and I wanted to see your face when I told you it was me that saved you'

' All about the glory aren't you?' she said smirking

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	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15: See You Break

Molly felt intimidated for the first time sitting there with him, he stared at her intensely his eyes unblinking. He flicked the pocketknife open and shut and she couldn't bear the silence anymore;

' So what now?' she said

' Depends on you doc, are you going to turn me in?' Molly hesitated

' I should, but I cant'

' Quite a pickle you're in eh doc?'

' Why were you following me?'

' I've told you doc, you intrigue me'

' I don't believe you' he leaned closer to her and flicked the knife open again,

' What would you like me to tell you doc, that all the time we've spent together has made me fall in love with you?'

' No, I want to know why you were following me and why you saved my life?'

' Because I want to see how long it will be before Grentz finally breaks you' she frowned at him in surprise,

' What?'

' Everyone has a breaking point doc and I think Grentz knows how to break you, I want to see you break'

' Why?'

' Because people only show the real them when they've been broken'

' Is this the real you?'

' What do you think doc?' he said pointing the knife at his scars again,

' Who broke you?' he stood up and crossed the room

' You owe me doc, remember that' he said giving her a wide grin as he walked out of the room, seconds later the front door slammed shut and she let out the deep breath she'd been holding.

A month passed with no word of Grentz, iris or the joker, Molly felt like she was waiting for a bomb to explode, she had a horrible feeling that everything would come crashing down around her any second. Two weeks after Sloane had been put back in Arkham he escaped, no one knew how he'd done it but Molly suspected he had help. Molly was a month into her three-month leave that Chilton had insisted she takes and she spent every single second trying to figure out where iris was.

What scared her the most was it had been a month and nobody knew whether she was alive or dead. Molly hated herself she felt so responsible for all of this.

Another two weeks passed and Molly finally had a lead, it had taken her a long time, and she suspected a little help from Sloane, she drove out of Gotham with a piece of paper clutched in her hand.

She reached the isolated house after three hours of driving and walked slowly up the driveway. The yard was overgrown and the house seemed deserted, she walked up the porch steps and knocked on the door. There was no answer so she walked around the back and found the back door unlocked. Her heart raced as she walked inside and crossed the kitchen, she couldn't hear a sound except her own breathing. Her side still twinged with pain as she walked and she almost screamed when she heard a thumping noise coming from above her. She clamped her hands over her mouth, he was here, she knew it.

She walked down the hallway and slowly began to walk up the stairs, treading quietly in case any of the steps creaked under her weight. She reached the top of the landing and a horrible smell hit her, it was a putrid and made her gag but she kept walking. She found the bathroom first and the smell hit her, at least she knew where it was coming from, she walked in and looked around. The shower curtain had been pulled around the bathtub and her heart began to pound and she could feel sweat trickling down her back making her shiver as she pulled it back. The tub was full of bloody water; the water was slowly evaporating because she could see a thick grimy line of dark brown near the edge of the bath. She held her breath and put her hand slowly into the cold, fetid water, her finger clasped around something small and rubbery, she lifted the thing slowly out of the water. She sat on the bathroom floor on the other side of the room away from the tub, the tiny hand still hung over the edge of the bath dripping the stained water onto the grimy white tiles below. She bit down on her own hand and shuddered uncontrollably, she had failed iris.

Molly was overtaken by anger, god knows how long iris had been there and molly couldn't stand thinking about what he'd done to her and she stood up. She walked along the hallway and pushed a bedroom door open, she saw the man she'd come to talk to tied to a bed. He looked malnourished and she wasn't sure if he was even still alive, she only knew for certain when he turned his head to her and tried to speak. She crossed the room and looked at him venomously,

' This is all your fault' she said coldly, the man blinked slowly through his half closed eyes and tried to speak again

' You made him what he is, if it weren't for you that little girl and several others would still be alive' he shook his head and open and closed his mouth slowly like a fish, molly looked at the bedside table and saw a set of the same surgical instruments Grentz had used to torture her and kill Sally. She picked up a scalpel and the man opened his eyes a bit more, she saw the fear in his eyes and smiled.

She left the room and walked down the hall to the next bedroom, the curtains were pulled to drown out some of the light but she could still see his still figure curled up in the bed. She walked slowly across the room still clutching the scalpel tightly in her hand; she looked down on him and pulled the covers away from his neck.

She walked downstairs and went back towards the kitchen and pushed the door back open, he was sitting at the table with a wide grin on his face. He looked her up and down, the blood that covered her hands and was splashed on her face, the blood that had soaked into her grey t-shirt and jeans and the scalpel in her hand,

' Oh my doc, he broke you good didn't he?' she didn't speak, she simply sat in front of him at the table and put the scalpel down in front on her. They both looked towards the window at the sound of distant sirens,

' You called the cops on me?' she said quietly

' No doc, I called the cops on me' she turned to look at him in disbelief

' I don't understand you'

' Come on doc I cant have you taking all the credit for this kind of brutality, that belongs to me'

' You'll go back into Arkham'

' Don't count on it doc' she watched him get up and heard him thump upstairs. He returned a few minutes later with blood on his hands and face, she could see it stained his waistcoat as well. He was carrying a small bundle wrapped in towels, Molly's stomach twisted as he handed the bundle to her,

' Wash your hands and face doc' he said as she refused to lift the bundle out of his arms, he laid iris on the table and pushed Molly over to the sink, she washed the blood off her hands and face,

' How did you know where I was?' she asked as she dabbed her face with a towel

' Who do you think tipped you off about daddy Grentz doc?' she gaped at him and looked out of the window as the GCPD cars screeched into the driveway,

' We'll talk again soon doc' he grabbed her roughly and picked up the scalpel off the table holding it to her throat as Jim Gordon burst through the door,

' You owe me twice now doc' he murmured in her ear as he threw her at Jim and ran through the house and out of the front door.

Molly walked outside to one of the cars with Jim clutching the small wrapped up bundle that was iris in her arms.

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	16. Chapter 16

Mature chapter guys x

Chapter 16: Pretty When You Cry

Molly sat in her apartment; she held a glass of whiskey in one hand and a cigarette in the other. She shrugged off her black jacket and rubbed her sore eyes. They hurt from crying for so long, that had been one of the worst experiences of her life, she had just returned home from Iris's funeral. Iris's parents had been hysterical, Molly had spent the entire funeral waiting for them to scream at her and blame their daughters death on her but they didn't, they thanked her for returning Iris to them so they could at least give their daughter a proper burial and gain some closure. She'd felt people's eyes burning into he back of her head as she sat in the church, she was glad to be out of there.

She kicked her shoes off and took another sip of whiskey, she was tired and wanted to sleep but she dreaded sleep now, every time she closed her eyes all she saw was Grentz and his father dead by her hand. She drained her glass and stubbed out her cigarette then walked to her bedroom, she sat on the edge of the bed and pulled off her stockings, she paused as she heard the water running in her bathroom.

She stood up and walked over to the door and pushed it open, she almost screamed when she saw him standing there dabbing his face with her towel. He had no makeup on and he looked at her and smiled,

' Evening doc, you know you're pretty when you cry?'

' What…. what are you doing?'

' I told you doc, you owe me'

' What do you want?'

' You know what I want doc' she backed away from the door and sat on the bed, she gulped as he walked out and sat next to her,

' I can't do this' her voice trembled slightly

' Yes you can because admit it doc you want to, you're so angry, so scared, so sick of everyone expecting so much of you doc aren't you?' she didn't speak but her head gave an involuntary nod,

' After everything you've been through, where are they all, why aren't they here with you when you're afraid to sleep' Molly started to shake

' Why is it I'm the only one who's been there for you doc, when you were tortured I was there, when you killed I was there' she stood up shakily

' Don't' she said her voice shaking as she tried to stop her mind filling with images of Grentz's smile as he cut her up

' You're so angry doc, but they wont let you be angry will they, you have to be perfect all the time, whereas I have seen the real you, I understand you doc' he stood behind her and she felt him slowly unzip the back of her black dress,

' You want to let that anger out don't you doc, all those years of putting everyone before yourself, the frustration, the emptiness, let it all go doc, use me to let go of it all' he said as he pushed the straps of the dress down her arms, she didn't stop him, she let him push the dress off until it fell to the floor.

He ran his hands over her stomach and let one rest on the raised scar on her stomach; he trailed his fingers over the jagged lines,

' We're not so different doc, we're both broken, we both need to let out some anger' he removed his hands and she saw his jacket, waistcoat and shirt fall on the floor, she couldn't help letting his words sink in, after all they were true, she was angry and frustrated and she did want this. She heard the light squeak of leather as he removed his shoes and felt his fingers trail up her back until he reached her bra strap, he snapped it undone with one hand and she pulled the straps off herself, he removed the rest of it as he roughly half kissed, half bit her shoulder,

' Use me doc, fill me up with your anger…I can take it'

She felt small droplets of water trickle down her skin from his wet hair, they trailed over her shoulder, down her chest and onto her breast, he followed the trail with his finger and grasped both her breasts in his hands. Molly let out a gasp as he pinched and tweaked her nipples roughly, she could feel his dick harden and push into her, she put her hands behind her and undid his belt, she unzipped his trousers and felt them fall away as she slipped her hand inside his boxers and began to rub his dick.

Molly heard the unmistakable click of his pocketknife and felt the cold metal slide down her hip as he cut her black silk thong off; it dropped to the ground quietly. He kicked her legs apart and roughly thrust his hands between her legs, Molly moaned and began to pull his boxers down behind her back.

The joker turned Molly around and pushed her onto the bed, he was on top of her in seconds, pinning her down,

' Tell me what you want Molly?' he said in a slightly dark, husky voice

' I want you to make me feel good' she said breathlessly

He leant down and sucked her nipple until it started to hurt, she moaned and pushed her hips up so she could feel his hard dick, he unpinned her hands and she immediately took hold of his dick and forced it inside of her roughly. He moaned loudly and began to thrust roughly and deeply into her, her legs were spread wide as she moaned,

' Make…me feel... good' she moaned breathlessly as he thrust in and out of her, Molly lost herself in their animalistic sex and pushed him over so she was on top, he grabbed her breasts roughly again and she held his hands there as she began to thrust roughly on top of him, she gripped his wrists as she felt herself getting close,

' Oh…god…yes' she moaned huskily as she reclined her head back, he grabbed her hips and yanked them so he could penetrate her deeper, he breathing was rough and jagged as he pushed deeper and deeper into her. He pushed her over and entered her from behind while he rubbed her clit vigorously with his fingers,

' Ahh…oh…god fuck me' she moaned loudly as he got rougher with her, he flipped her over so they were facing each other again, he thrust into her sharply and began to suck her nipples again, biting them went they became hard in his mouth,

' Ahh…. fuck me harder, rougher…ahh' Molly moaned loudly, he was only to happy to oblige as he picked her up and pinned her to the wall, he slammed her viciously against the wall as he slammed his dick in and out of her and Molly loved it,

' Oh god…fill me up…. yes' she moaned as she felt herself climax he moaned almost angrily as he pulled her back down onto the bed, he lifted her leg so he could get deeper into her and Molly moaned as she came.

They lay next to each other in bed, both panting for breath, he lay on his side trailing the blade of his knife over her heaving breasts and occasionally biting her nipple again. There had been no kissing, no I love you, they hadn't made love, she felt damp with sweat and her clit was throbbing from the intensity. Her body ached from the roughness of the sex but she had to admit for the first time in ages, she felt good.

Review or no updates x


	17. Chapter 17

Last part, I thought about taking this further but decided it would become to clichéd or repetitive so this is just a little chapter to wind things up, hope you've enjoyed x

Chapter 17: Six Months Later

Molly opened her eyes and groaned as the light flooded in, blinding her. It had been six months since she'd shared her bed with one of Gothams most wanted and she hadn't seen him since. But in truth she hadn't expected to, he'd gone before she'd even woken up but she knew it had happened, her body ached and her bed was a tangled mass of sheets.

She'd never told anyone what had happened and doubted she ever would, she knew he was still out there, the evidence was all over the news whenever he did something new.

She returned to work two months after the Grentz case; no one had ever suspected that she had been the one to stop Grentz, everyone was completely happy to believe it was the work of the joker. Iris' parents were completely traumatised though, they'd had to bury their daughter at such a young age and molly doubted either of them would ever get over it completely.

She left her apartment and drove to work like she did every day, greeted her co-workers and went to her office. She was surprised to see iris' mother sitting at her desk,

' Mrs west, how are you?' she asked hesitantly

' Terrible…I…I wanted to thank you Dr Stone' she said standing

' Me…what for?' molly said

' Bringing her back to us, it's given us some kind of…'

' Closure?' Mrs West nodded, her eyes welling up,

' I'm sorry I didn't find her in time Mrs West'

' No stop, I can't even begin to thank you for what you did, that's twice you risked your life to help iris and…well…I should go I know you have patients to see, thank you again' she had lowered her head and molly knew she was silently crying. She passed molly and turned just as she reached the door,

' You know what Dr Stone I'm glad the joker killed that asshole, I'd shake his hand and thank him if I met him' she turned around and left molly alone in her office.

Molly sat downstairs and spoke to Sloane, she was amazed he'd stuck around so long but she knew why, he was staying for her. Despite being portrayed as a monster Sloane cared about molly and he'd watched her closely everyday to see if something inside her had finally snapped. He knew something had but she wasn't going to tell him, he had his own theories on what it was.

Back alone in her apartment was the only place molly could be herself and drop the fake smile. She turned on the TV and lit a cigarette flicking through the channels until she got to the news,

" In a devastating turn of events the parents of Iris West were found dead today in their home. It is believed the parents of the murdered girl both took lethal overdoses of the prescription medicine given to them to help them cope. A note was left at the scene, and insider secretly revealed to us that all it said was they were going to be with iris. This is truly a horrific day and our thoughts go out to their families, I'm Rowena Hill for Gotham news".

Madison sat still and stared at the news reporter, her frosty pink lipstick reminded molly of that bitchy flight attendant she'd encountered on her way to Gotham,

' Feeling angry doc?' she felt the hand slide down her shirt and the strands of greasy hair on her cheek as he whispered from behind her.

**thankyou for reading, i hope you've enjoyed in for the kill, please review x**


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